1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an absorbent article having fluid absorbent capability, and in particular relates to an absorbent article suitable for use as a urine collection pad.
2. Related Art
A urine collection pad is provided for incontinence but modes of incontinence are not uniform. Various forms of incontinence may be envisaged, from incontinence in which large quantities of urine are discharged, to incontinence in which only a small amount of urine is excreted. For example, since slight incontinence, which occurs with abdominal pressure due to sneezing or the like, results in only a little urine excretion, the urine is not excreted from the urinary tract with force, but moves easily on the skin. As a result, if the urine collection pad and the excretion area of the body are not in close contact, the urine that moves on the skin cannot move assuredly to an absorbent body, and leaks easily to outside the urine collection pad. Furthermore, with urgent incontinence, a relatively large amount of urine is excreted at one time. In such cases, if the urine is not quickly absorbed by the absorbent body, it is in contact with the skin for a long period, so that skin roughness easily occurs, and there is a risk of leakage occurring. Therefore, there is a need to rapidly absorb the urine, even when the amount thereof is large.
In this way, the absorbent article used as the urine collection pad must be able to rapidly and assuredly absorb urine, whether excreted in small amounts or in large amounts. This is the same for an absorbent article used as a sanitary napkin.
In generally, the absorbent article used as the urine collection pad is composed of a fluid permeable top sheet, a fluid impermeable back sheet, and an absorbent body positioned between the top sheet and the back sheet, and the absorbent body is formed by mixing pulp and highly absorbent fiber. Technology for capturing a small amount of urine is disclosed for absorbent articles described in, for example, Japanese Patent No. 3442929 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2002-320638.
These absorbent articles are formed with bossing extending in a longitudinal direction on a fluid-receiving surface that is in contact with the body of a wearer. Since the bossing portion can be in close contact with the excretion area of the wearer, small amounts of urine excreted by the excretion area can be easily trapped.
However, as in the absorbent articles described in Japanese Patent No. 3442929 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2002-320638, the bossing portion itself, formed on a fluid absorbent sheet, is in direct contact with the skin, and when body fluid such as urine is initially absorbed, if the body fluid is excreted in a large amount, the large amount of fluid can easily remain on both sides of the bossing portion. Furthermore, the urine that cannot be absorbed by the bossing portion is absorbed by the absorbent body of the main absorbent article. In such cases, the absorption speed of the pulp in the absorbent body of the main absorbent article cannot keep up with the flow of the body fluid, and there is a problem in that the body fluid easily flows to outside of both left and right sides of the absorbent article.